The Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) brought the serious sewage crisis affecting Skoonplaas in the Musina Local Municipality to the attention of the Green Scorpions.
In turn, this environmental authority notified the local Department of Water and Sanitation last week, whereafter the area was visited and cleaning efforts commenced.
The terrible conditions were experienced first-hand during the provincial leader’s visit shortly before the local elections. Raw sewage flows through the residential area where more than a thousand registered voters reside. Children play in the contaminated water, and residents sometimes have no other choice but to use it for washing their laundry due to the overall lack of water and sanitation services.
Skoonplaas is a densely populated informal/semi-formal settlement right next to Musina Mall. The settlement originally developed around the houses of former copper mine workers.
The fact that it is a low-lying area with inadequate sanitation and stormwater infrastructure exacerbates the problem, while exposing the community to severe health and environmental risks.
The sewage problem is nothing new and has been plaguing several areas in Musina for years.
Based on feedback from the newly elected Freedom Front Plus councillor, Margie van Staden, municipal sanitation services have already started cleaning up. Upgrading the sewage system is reportedly one of the Municipality’s intended infrastructure projects in the current budget.
The Freedom Front Plus welcomes the swift intervention, but wants to emphasise that a temporary clean-up is not enough. The underlying problem has to be permanently resolved.
The party will closely monitor the situation until a sustainable solution is in place.
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